To wonder why people would choose to work night shifts

[Whythough6666]

Surely it’s much better for the body to work day shifts and doesn’t the body shut down at night usually like urine production stops etc

Not everyone can choose.

More money than day shifts

Because they need the money?

Some times there's more money, night shifts might be quieter. Some jobs need to happen at night. I think where it's voluntary and consistent and works with your life its ok it's the rotating shift patterns that everyone has to do I think are the worst.

Because some of us are owls.
Because some jobs pay more at night.
You still produce urine at night - hopefully, you don't excrete it while asleep.

More money. Less problems with child care. Depending on where you work: quieter shifts. If you work 12 hour shifts on the trot you get NOTHING done if you work days, but if it’s a run of nights you might come home, go to bed, get up in the afternoon and have a bit of a life before going in to do another shift….
Can you tell, I’ve done them for years!
To be fair though, they are really draining and I’m glad that I bare moly have to do them now!

Some do it for childcare reasons,. A colleague of mine did this so that he can do the school runs when his wife is at work.. not sure when he sleeps! Also my sister has worked nights as a nurse for years it enabled her to attend all her kids school assemblies etc and were condensed into 3 or 4 12 hr shifts a week.

The job that I do is done very often at night. If I didn’t accept working nights I would not be able have the otherwise brilliant job that I do have. We are given a lot of rest time though, and I have chosen a very specific route through my career in order that I minimise circadian disruption. You are right it is not good for the body in the long term, so I choose to earn less and mess my body (and home life) up less.

Because at night children still get sick, and babies still get born, so to do my job I have to take my fair share of the nights.

I did nights for years when my kids were young ( nursing). mainly for childcare reasons. But yes they aren't great for your health.

It was easier for me to work a 12 hour night shift and my Mum see the kids off to school, then they'd sleep in hers. I only needed 40 hours a week. So I'd do three/four nights. She preferred them to be Friday-Sunday. The body doesn't shut down at night. My body clock suits twilight/night working.

Some people don’t have a choice
It might pay more
childcare

Because some jobs involve shift work - Drs, Paramedics, Police etc. can't choose what hours they work.

I enjoyed night work it suited my lifestyle with the DC, school runs, I'm more focused in the evenings than the mornings.

Though I didn’t realise that it was so tough on the family until the pandemic and I lost my job.

I'd get in after 7am and DP would leave at 8am on little sleep either.

My job was an office type role I'd be alone from 4am until 7am and I was very grateful because my body would pass wind as it was shutting down about 5am.

Something I don't usually do. 😅

When the DC are older I'll work nights again.

I work nights from home.
More money
MUCH quieter than the day shift.
I can do workout videos, mumsnet, write, do all my paperwork and life administration, watch TV (usually don't do all of those things in the same night but at least manage a quick workout and some reading/TV, emails etc because there's just not so much going on. No getting up early and rushing off somewhere. I absolutely love it. I've had day jobs and because I'm just so much of an owl, I've been falling asleep at my desk by mid morning. Even if I'm tired at night, i can power through. YANBU to wonder of course, but the 'surely it's better' comment is a tad ignorant. Yes it is, for some people, but we're not all the same. And thank God for that!

I work in MH. Do people only desperately need someone to talk to, or perhaps want to harm themselves and need intervention, before 17:00?

I'm a night owl. Most of.my jobs have been lates or nights. Will always choose a night shift over an early start. Takes me ages to wake up and get going in the morning.

I'm working the night shift right now!

But yes it's not good for your body.

Money is better and it works for my lifestyle. Definitely not for everyone though.

For some jobs it's both safer and less disruptive (i.e. working on roads/rail- full closures are simpler to put on overnight meaning workers are safer and rush hour transport isn't distruped),

Your body still works, I guess the slowdown in urine production probably goes hand in hand with sleep rather than night. However it is really disruptive, as others have said, where you have to keep switching cycles between days ans nights.

If you’ve got kids nights are often easier. Sleep in the day when they’re at school or out playing with their pals in the holidays. Nights often pay more for less hours.

Some of us are naturally nocturnal.

In addition, I personally loathe the stupid office (or other workplace) nonsensical political ballocks that you have to put up with during the day. I swear some people only go to work to socialise... My happiest working days were, bizarrely, just before and during the pandemic when I was very very lucky to be able to do my job and some additional self-employed work from home, at 3am if I felt like it. As long as the work got done, it didn't matter that it wasn't being completed between 8.30am and 5pm Monday to Friday.

And then presenteeism kicked in and managers decided that it was a very effective use of time to spend 7.5 to 8 hours a day on Teams calls from 8.45am to 5.45pm talking about not very much really.

The other half is in frontline healthcare and also dislikes day shifts due to the stupid politicking and general enforced self-justifying HR wellbeing nonsense. In general nightshifts are also better paid.

If these hellishly hot and humid summers continue in the UK and the rest of northern Europe, as seem likely, I do wonder whether night working might finally become more acceptable. I do often get exasperated that I have to live in a world dictated by larks...

i don’t think many people do them for fun. They do them because they have to (eg hospital staff, police etc) or because only they can juggle childcare with a partner who works during the day.

I’ve done 50-60% nights for years. It will certainly end my life earlier.

There are people who are alive because I was there at night to resuscitate them. Including children. The last time I can truly say I saved a life was two days ago.

It’s worth it.

Less problems with child care.

In a 2-parent family, yes. Depending on the other parent.

I have so much respect for a friend who is a solo parent - as I am - who worked nights as a nurse and rented out a spare room in her house to a female student who would be there for her son during the nights that she worked.

She would come home, take her son to school (primary), go home and sleep until she had to get up to collect him again.

she did eventually get burnt out though

Sorry, just as an aside OP why do you think night bags for catheters exist if urine production stops at night?

What a f*in stupid question Do you really not know the answer?